1965: Malcolm X’s Assassination

Landmark Moments in Civil Rights History

Black Muslim leader Malcolm X, founder of the Organization of Afro American Unity, was shot to death at age 39 in Harlem, New York. (AP Photo/Eddie Adams)

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1863: Emancipati... Then-President Abraham Lincoln delivered an executive order to free "all slaves in areas still in rebellion." (AP Photo)

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1865: The 13th, ... Slavery was made illegal everywhere in the United States when the 13th Amendment took effect in December of 1865. Three years later, the 14th Amendment, requiring equal protection under the law to all persons, was ratified. The 15th Amendment, banning racial discrimination in voting, followed two years later. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

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1896: ‘Separate ... The segregation doctrine was approved by the Supreme Court. (AP Photo)

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1909: NAACP The National Negro Committee convened for the very first time in 1909, leading to the creation of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, best known as the NAACP. (AP Photo, file)

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1926: Negro Hist... Carter G. Woodson proposed Negro History Week in 1926 as a way to educate the American people about African-American history. The idea took flight, eventually evolving into modern-day Black History Month. (Photos: Hulton Archive, Getty Images and AP)

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1947: Jackie Rob... Jackie Robinson played his first game for the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1947, officially becoming the first professional black baseball player in 60 years. (AP Photo)

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1948: Executive ... President Harry S. Truman issued Executive Order 9981, ending all segregation in the Armed Forces. (Photo: Fox Photos, Hulton Archive/Getty Images)

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1954: Brown v. B... The U.S. Supreme Court declared state laws establishing separate public schools for black and white students unconstitutional. The unanimous decision stated that "separate educational facilities are inherently unequal." (AP Photo/Orlin Wagner)

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1955: Rosa Parks Rosa Parks was thrown in jail for refusing to move to the back of a Montgomery, Alabama, public bus. The African-American community staged a major public transportation boycott, prompting the Federal Interstate Commerce Commission to ban segregation on interstate trains and buses. (AP Photo/Montgomery County Sheriff's office)

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1957: Little Roc... Governor Orval Faubus attempted to block nine black students from entering the all-white Little Rock High School in Arkansas. President Eisenhower sent in federal troops to walk the students into the school safely. (AP Photo, Fred Kaufman)

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1960: The Greens... Four black freshmen from the historically black North Carolina A&T State University sat at the the whites-only lunch counter at a local Woolworth building and requested service. (AP Photo/Gerry Broome)

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1962: James Mere... James Meredith, center with briefcase, was the first black student to attend the University of Mississippi after integration. (AP Photo, File)

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1963: ‘I Have a ... Martin Luther King Jr. delivers his now-famous "I Have a Dream" speech to thousands at the March on Washington, D.C. (AP Photo/File)

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1963: John F. Ke... President John F. Kennedy calls for Civil Rights for African-Americans, "the kind of equality of treatment which we would want for ourselves." (AP Photo, FILE)

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1963: Medgar Eve... Mississippi's NAACP field secretary Medgar Evers was shot and killed on the doorstep of his Jackson, Mississippi, home by Byron De La Beckwith, a member of the White Citizens' Council.

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1964: Civil Righ... Congress officially passed the Civil Right Act, declaring any discrimination based on race illegal, in 1964. President Lyndon Johnson signed the act on July 2. (AP Photo)

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1965: Malcolm X’... Black Muslim leader Malcolm X, founder of the Organization of Afro American Unity, was shot to death at age 39 in Harlem, New York. (AP Photo/Eddie Adams)

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1965: Bloody Sun... The Alabama African-American community held a march on Sunday, March 7, 1965 with a plan to walk from Selma to Montgomery and demand that the Governor put a stop to police violence against blacks. The group was met by state troopers, who attacked the crowd of people with tear gas, whips, and clubs. The incident garnered national attention. (AP Photo/File)

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1966: Black Pant... Huey P. Newton and Bobby Seale start the Black Panthers organization in Oakland, California. (AP Photo)

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1967: Thurgood M... Thurgood Marshall became the first African-American assigned to the United States Supreme Court. (AP Photo/Courtesy of the NAACP)

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1968: Martin Lut... Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated on April 4, 1968, in Memphis, Tennessee. He was posthumously awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1977 and Congressional Gold Medal in 2004. (AP Photo/file)

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1983: Martin Lut... President Ronald Reagan signed a bill creating a national federal holiday to honor Dr. Martin Luther King on November 2. (AP Photo/Barry Thumma)

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